Marking two decades since the legendary game hit the market in North America, offering everyday gamers the opportunity to become a rock star. Not literally, though you'd be hard-pressed convincing anyone who's nailed Free Bird’s four-minute guitar solo in front of an enthusiastic living-room audience.
Developed by Harmonix, the game gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to follow coloured notes scrolling down the display in time with the music. Each riff corresponded to particular chords, producing the sensation of a genuine live show.
Harmonix had already experimented with rhythm games prior to teaming up with RedOctane, later purchased by the gaming giant in 2006. Collaboratively, they laid the groundwork for an unlikely billion-dollar series that had a remarkable influence for many musicians featured, introducing classic groups to millions of younger players.
A former executive, former COO of Harmonix, recalls the early financial challenges of licensing the recordings – even though the first two games primarily featured rerecorded tracks.
“We reproduced all the music since the cost prohibitive,” he says. “Even with the publishing rights alone, it was nearly impossible. We failed to secure acts such as the Who – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were fairly certain it would fail. But once Guitar Hero became a hit, album purchases and radio play were going up, everyone wanted to participate.”
He adds: “One of the remarkable aspects was the number of parents got in touch expressing gratitude for introducing their kids to the songs they loved. It became a multigenerational thing.”
Classic Rock Gains a New Audience
Northern Irish blues-rock band the Answer included their track on the 2008 game Guitar Hero World Tour. Lead musician Paul Mahon recalls how the series brought older hits to the forefront: “Guitar Hero offered a larger, younger audience. Generally such music was considered outdated material, but then once it got featured on the title young people discovered it, abruptly it was cool. This validated it, and got rid of the outdated tag. It provided all our music a new life.”
At that time, the band's debut album was still unreleased stateside, meaning the game served as a primary platform of discovery for the group as they went on US tour opening for AC/DC. “Their crew had on Never Too Late on the tour bus, and several recognized us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Major Band Spin-offs and Lasting Impact
Rock’s heavyweight names quickly capitalised on the game's success, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen featuring in specialized spin-off titles that focused on their music collections and associated stories, visuals and rock’n’roll mythology. In the case of, the Aerosmith edition, it was said earned the band greater revenue than any of their records. It moved more than half a million copies in its first week, while sales of Aerosmith’s music saw an increase significantly at a time as the industry faced decline.
The series still motivates quick-handed dedication within the community. Earlier this year, a streamer completed a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s Through the Fire and Flames – a notoriously difficult power-metal song made popular by the game – on Clone Hero, a no-cost alternative with almost identical mechanics and extensive customisation options. The song is challenging enough on the hardest setting, let alone played at increased tempo and without missing every one of the thousands of cues. The streamer stated it took nine months of practice.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, fantasy thing. If you play other games, it doesn't imply you ought to pick up a real gun and go to war,” notes musician Herman Li.
The band previously completed a successful tour before Through the Fire and Flames was featured on Guitar Hero III, but Li says it turned them into widely recognized. “I remember the record label informing us that we were records were moving rapidly,” he shares. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we were playing right ahead of top acts at the event.”
In fact, the band's visibility from Guitar Hero was so immense that it threatened to overshadow everything else the band has done. Last year, the song featured in promotional material for Despicable Me 4. “Previously I thought otherwise, but I’ve made peace with it,” he admits. “If you only listen to one DragonForce song, it’s totally cool – each person has a unique path in music and I’m glad we’ve been part of people’s lives”.
The Lasting Legacy from the Plastic Guitar
The best promotion, whether it’s for cars, apparel or games, extends beyond mere transactions – it evokes a desire. Was the game able to harness this? “Precisely what our team aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of performing as a rock star on the stage. Since the beginning, the co-founders believed there’s an instinctive urge to make music, and their goal was to leverage innovation to allow people to do it”.
The majority of Guitar Hero games were released over a mere five-year period between 2005 and 2010, including spin-offs like DJ Hero, complete with a spinning deck, and the band-focused game. After that, corporate focus on peripherals waned, aside from a short-lived revival several years later.
Titles such as the fan project and newer releases have maintained the community alive, with expectations of a new product from the original publisher in development. Recently formed developers has entered production on its debut music game. Original co-founders are both involved as special advisers. Is the world prepared to welcome another game in the spirit of Guitar Hero?
“We thought such titles might become similar to sports games allowing annual update every year,” he remarks. “With abundant fresh tracks it could remain evergreen, thus I remain hopeful. There’s no reason why it can’t persist with new generations.”
